Once Upon a Time
Behind the Fairy Tale of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier
By Randy Taraborrelli 

     Author Taraborrelli brings readers yet another biography of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier. It is extensive: from Grace Kelly's childhood and her family to her film career and the married men she loved and lost, to her impatient, unusual meeting with the Prince.

     The meeting was the result of a list the Prince created in order to find a wife who could improve his royal status and income (the dowry requested and paid was two millions dollars). The list had many rich and famous women on it and Grace was not the only American actress listed. The fact that the good Prince made no adjustments and arrived very late may have been a preview of how much he was willing to put into the marriage and a sign that it was Grace who would become the inner strength of both Monaco and the royal family - even though it would cost her her freedom.

     Taraborrelli brings up the question that was often put to the Princess: was she happy? Like Princess Grace, he dances around the issue and explains the marriage in terms of commitment, a contract. He does, however, reveal that it was Grace's mother who pushed her into the royal marriage. Her true desire was to marry fashion designer Oleg Cassini, but her parents did not approve of him.

     Her car wreck, like Princess Diana's, came down to a seat belt that would have saved her life and the lack of ready medical attention. It does make one think. He eventually ends the book with a touching description of her funeral and updates of the lives of the royal children.

Actor Edward Herrmann is the audio book reader. His voice articulates with perfection the formal, old-fashioned writing style and speech of those quoted in the biography. Also included are background music and an interview with author J. Randy Taraborrelli, who discusses writing about a princess that his mother idolized.